West Orange is a township in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the township population was 44,943. West Orange adjoins the South Mountain Reservation.
Geography
West Orange is located at 40°47′19″N, 74°15′19″W (40.788650, -74.255416).[US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 12.2 square miles (31.7 km²), of which, 12.1 square miles (31.4 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.3 km²) of it (0.90%) is water.
The oldest and most densely populated part of the township lies in the low valley along the border with the City of Orange, between Montclair Township in the north and South Orange Township to the south. The Edison National Historic Site is located on Main Street in this section, and several major east-west arteries of the Newark street grid have their western terminus here, notably Central and Park Avenues. Downtown West Orange has a more urban character than the rest of the township.
Moving west, the neighborhoods along the First Watchung Mountain become increasingly suburban, ascending the steep hill along Northfield, Mount Pleasant, and Eagle Rock Avenues. The housing stock in neighborhoods of Hutton Park and the First Mountain neighborhoods is a mixture of 19th-century and Jazz Age estates, large pre-war Tudor-style houses, garden apartments, and post-war suburban houses. Llewellyn Park, one of the country\'s first planned communities, is also located on the First Mountain. These parts of town overlook downtown West Orange and many streets, often called terraces, have sweeping views of the skylines of downtown Newark and New York City.
Beyond the high ridge of Prospect Avenue, the township transitions to a predominantly post-war suburban neighborhood, interspersed with pockets of older homes, golf courses, and shopping centers, sloping back down toward Pleasant Valley Way. Pleasantdale includes a business district and large Orthodox Jewish community.
The westernmost section of West Orange lies along the eastern face of the Second Watchung Mountain, and includes a large part of South Mountain Reservation. The post-war housing stock in this neighborhood resembles Pleasant Valley, bordering the townships of Millburn, Maplewood and Livingston.
Demographics
| Historical populations
|
| Census | Pop. | | %±
|
| 1930 | 24,327 | | — |
| 1940 | 25,662 | | 5.5% |
| 1950 | 28,605 | | 11.5% |
| 1960 | 39,895 | | 39.5% |
| 1970 | 43,715 | | 9.6% |
| 1980 | 39,510 | | -9.6% |
| 1990 | 39,103 | | -1.0% |
| 2000 | 44,943 | | 14.9% |
| Est. 2006 | 43,536 | [Census data for West Orange township, United States Census Bureau. Accessed August 19, 2007.] | -3.1% |
Population 1930 - 1990.[Jersey Resident Population by Municipality: 1930 - 1990, Workforce New Jersey Public Information Network. Accessed March 1, 2007.] |
As of the census[American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.] of 2000, there were 44,943 people, 16,480 households, and 11,684 families residing in the township. The population density was 3,708.7 people per square mile (1,431.7/km²). There were 16,901 housing units at an average density of 1,394.7/sq mi (538.4/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 67.55% White, 17.46% African American, 0.14% Native American, 8.09% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 3.52% from other races, and 3.20% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.04% of the population.
There were 16,480 households out of which 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.0% were married couples living together, 11.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.1% were non-families. 24.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.19. In the township the population was spread out with 23.3% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 29.7% from 25 to 44, 23.4% from 45 to 64, and 17.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 88.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.0 males.
The median income for a household in the township was $69,254, and the median income for a family was $83,375. Males had a median income of $52,029 versus $39,484 for females. The per capita income for the township was $34,412. About 4.6% of families and 5.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.0% of those under age 18 and 7.8% of those age 65 or over.
Government
The Township of West Orange is governed by the Mayor-Council system of municipal government under the Faulkner Act. Within this form of government, each member of the Township Council is elected in nonpartisan elections and serves on an at-large basis, representing the entire township.
The Mayor[West Orange Office of the Mayor, Township of West Orange. Accessed May 23, 2006.] and members of the Township Council[West Orange Township Council, Township of West Orange. Accessed March 14, 2007.] are:
- John F. McKeon, Mayor (term ends June 30, 2010)
- John Skarbnik, Township Councilman (2008)
- Renard Barnes, Township Councilman (2010)
- Richard A. Giuditta, Jr., Township Councilman (2008; Council President as of July 1, 2007)
- Susan McCartney, Township Councilwoman (2010)
- Robert Parisi, Township Councilman (2008)
Municipal Court
- Harry L. Starrett - Presiding Judge, West Orange Municipal Court
- Margaret Padovano - Municipal Judge, West Orange Municipal Court
- Mark Infante - Municipal Prosecutor
Township facilities
Politics
On the national level, West Orange leans toward the Democratic Party. In 2004, Democrat John Kerry received 65% of the vote there, as opposed to Republican George W. Bush, who received around 34%.
Federal, state and county representation
West Orange is split between the Eighth and Tenth Congressional and is part of New Jersey\'s 27th Legislative District.[New Jersey Citizens Guide to Government p. 66, New Jersey League of Women Voters. Accessed August 24, 2006.]
New Jersey\'s Eighth Congressional District, covering the southern portion of Passaic County and northern sections of Essex County, is represented by Bill Pascrell Jr. (D, Paterson). New Jersey\'s Tenth Congressional District, covering portions of Essex County, Hudson County, and Union County, is represented by Donald M. Payne (D, Newark). New Jersey is represented in the Senate by Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park) and Bob Menendez (D, Hoboken).
For the 2008-2009 Legislative Session, the 27th district of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Richard Codey (D, West Orange) and in the Assembly by Mila Jasey (D, South Orange) and John F. McKeon (D, West Orange). The Governor of New Jersey is Jon Corzine (D, Hoboken).
West Orange is represented on the Essex County Board of Chosen Freeholders by Freeholders Linda Lordi-Cavanaugh (District 4), Donald M. Payne, Jr. (At-Large) and Freeholder Blonnie R. Watson (At-Large).
Education
-
Main article: West Orange Public Schools
The West Orange Public Schools serves students in Kindergarten through 12th grade. The district consist of a total of eleven school facilities: seven elementary schools (all K-5, except as noted) — Gregory,
Hazel Avenue,
Mount Pleasant,
Pleasantdale (PreK-5),
Redwood,
St. Cloud and
Washington — three middle schools —
Edison (6),
Liberty (7&8) and
Roosevelt (7&8) —
and one high school, West Orange High School, for grades 9-12. The West Orange school district has been ranked among the top 1% of schools in the nation by The Washington Post.
History
West Orange was initially a part of the city of Newark, and remained such until November 27, 1806, when the territory now encompassing all of The Oranges was detached to form Orange Township.["The Story of New Jersey\'s Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968", John P. Snyder, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 133.] On April 13, 1807, the first government was elected. On January 31, 1860, Orange was incorporated as a town, and on April 3, 1872, it was officially incorporated as a city.[ Almost immediately, Orange began fragmenting into smaller communities, primarily because of local disputes about the costs of establishing paid police, fire, and street departments. South Orange was organized on April 1, 1861, Fairmount (an independent municipality for less than one year that was later to become part of West Orange) on March 11, 1862 and East Orange on March 4, 1863.][ West Orange (including what had been the briefly-independent municipality of Fairmount) was formed as a township on April 10, 1863, and was reformed as a town on February 28, 1900.][
]
Llewellyn Park, the first planned community in America is located within West Orange. Designed by Llewellyn Haskell and A. J. Davis in 1857.[LP Historical Society and Archives, Llewellyn Park. Accessed September 10, 2007.] Llewellyn Park is considered the best example of "The Romantic Landscape" movement of that period. Thomas Edison was one of the many residents.
Mass media and telecommunications
For years West Orange has been a hotbed for the mass-media and telecommunications industries, From the mid-1970s until the early 1990s Channel 68 TV maintained their offices, studios and transmitter on Eagle Rock Avenue which was then occupied by WNBC-TV and WPXN-TV as a backup transmitter facility after Channel 68 moved to West Market Street in Newark. As of March 2007, the 416 Eagle Rock Avenue property is now an empty lot, the main building which housed Channel 68 was recently demolished and the transmitter tower now stands alone. WFME Radio has their offices studios and transmitter while their sister station WFME-TV has their executive offices in the same building on Mount Pleasant Avenue next to an MCI Communications (Now part of Verizon Communications) Fiber optics and satellite transmission facility and a Fiber Optic and satellite transmission facility on Eagle Rock Avenue next to the old Channel 68 building. Former Upsala College radio station WFMU\'s transmitter is on Marcella Avenue just down the street from WFME. Sprint Nextel and Verizon Wireless all have cell towers located throughout the township to provide clear coverage and Verizon maintains a huge Central Office on Prospect Avenue.
Notable residents
Notable current and former residents of West Orange include:
- Dan Bălan, Writer of Dragostea Din Tei and leader of the Moldovan pop boy-band group O-zone, now a rock singer with his band Balan producing, writing, composing, and singing songs such as Sugar Tunes Numa Numa.[citation needed]
- Martin Brodeur, ice hockey goaltender in the NHL with the New Jersey Devils.
- Brendan T. Byrne (1924-), Governor of New Jersey from 1974 to 1982.
[Golway, Terry. "When Codey Talks, He Talks to Them", The New York Times, October 31, 2004. Accessed November 5, 2007. "Essex County, home of the state\'s largest city, Newark, and a diverse population of nearly 800,000, has not had a governor to call its own since Brendan T. Byrne - another native of West Orange - left office January 1982."]
- Joan Caulfield (1922-1991), Movie, theatre, television actress of the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. Born in East Orange, she moved to West Orange during childhood and lived here until her high school graduation from a private school in Orange.
[Fowler, Glenn. "Joan Caulfield, A Film Actress, Is Dead at 69", The New York Times, June 20, 1991. Accessed November 5, 2007. "Miss Caulfield, who was a native of West Orange, N.J., attended Columbia University and was a fashion model and a cover girl before she landed ingenue roles on Broadway in the early 1940\'s."]
- Alex Chiger (1985-), Hiphop music producer (aka "Don Cheegro") whose credits include work found on the Grammy winning album "Release Therapy" by Ludacris, "Fantasia" by Fantasia, Chris Brown\'s "Exclusive" and Beanie Sigel\'s "The Solution".[citation needed]
- Richard J. Codey (1946-), State Senator, and Acting Governor of New Jersey in 2002 and Governor from 2004 until 2006.
[Fairleigh Dickinson University Commencement Honoree: Richard J. Codey, Fairleigh Dickinson University. Accessed December 31, 2006.]
- Brandon Costner, Sophomore forward for the NC State Wolfpack basketball team.
[Young, Jim. "STRONG SENDEK RECRUITING CLASS ADDS N.J. POWER FORWARD", Greensboro News & Record, september 24, 2004. Accessed November 5, 2007, "N.C. State landed its third commitment for the Class of 2005 when Brandon Costner, a 6-foot-8, 210-pound power forward from West Orange, N.J., picked the Wolfpack on Wednesday."]
- Charles Cullen (1960-), Serial killer who grew up on Kling Street.
[A killer\'s final insult, The Star-Ledger, March 3, 2006.]
- Ginny Duenkel (1947-), Winner of a Gold and Bronze medal in two swimming events at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan.
["Webster and Miss Duenkel Gain Diving and Swimming Gold Medals for U.S.; JERSEY GIRL SETS 400-METER MARK She Captures Free-Style in 4:43.3 -- Webster Rallies From 6th in High Diving", The New York Times, October 18, 1964. Accessed November 5, 2007. "Bob Webster, a 25-year-old diving perfectionist from Santa Ana, Calif., and Ginny Duenkel, a free-style swimmer from West Orange, N.J., won gold medals today for the United States."] Ginny Duenkel Municipal Pool is named in her honor.
- DJ Whoo Kid, Official DJ of G-Unit.
[Jordan, Chris. "Hip-hop phenomenon \'mixtapes\' go mainstream", The Tennessean , March 8, 2005. Accessed November 5, 2007. "Whoo Kid, who hails from West Orange, N.J., has certainly diversified. The Queens-raised kid of Haitian parents starting spinning at 16; now, he performs around the world with 50 Cent and on his own."]
- Charles Edison (1890-1969), United States Secretary of the Navy 1940, Governor of New Jersey 1941 to 1944 and son of Thomas Edison.
[New Jersey Governor Charles Edison, National Governors Association. Accessed November 5, 2007. "Charles Edison, the fifty-eighth governor of New Jersey, was born in West Orange, New Jersey on August 3, 1890."]
- Theodore Miller Edison (1898-1992), only child of his inventor father who graduated college; went on to become an inventor with over 80 patents.
[Pace, Eric. "Theodore M. Edison; An Illustrious Father Guided Inventor, 94", New York Times, November 26, 1992. Retrieved on 2007-07-21. "Theodore M. Edison, an inventor, environmentalist and philanthropist who was the last surviving child of the inventor Thomas Alva Edison, died on Tuesday at his home in West Orange. He was 94 years old." ]
- Thomas Alva Edison (1847-1931), Invented the phonograph, the incandescent electric lightbulb, and the first practical motion picture camera. Edison\'s Black Maria, the first movie studio, was located in West Orange.
[Thomas Edison National Historical Park, govnotes.com. Accessed November 5, 2007. "Half of Edison\'s astonishing 1,093 patents were earned during the 44 years he lived in West Orange."]
- Eugenio Fernandi (1922-1991), a leading tenor with the Metropolitan Opera who rose to prominence in the late 1950s and 1960s. He is credited with having received twenty-two curtain calls for his performance in Lucia di Lammermoor.
[curtain calls and residency supported by Michael Redmond, Sunday Star-Ledger, August 18, 1991.]
- Leo Fitzpatrick (1978-), Actor who was in Kids and Bully which also stars former West Orange resident Michael Pitt.[citation needed]
- General Paul J. Kern was the commanding general of the United States Army Materiel Command from 2001-2004.
["Major Army Command Says Farewell to Four-Star Commander", United States Army Materiel Command press release. Accessed November 19, 2007. "Kern was raised in West Orange , NJ and graduated from West Orange High School."]
- Carole King (1942-) and Gerry Goffin (1939-), Husband & wife songwriting team. From the late 1950s through the 1980s they were one of the most talented and successful of all pop song writers. In 1969, she expanded her career to singing with her 1971 album Tapestry, one of the most popular of all-time. In the early to mid 1960s they resided off Pleasant Valley Way along with other song writers. This location gave rise to the song Pleasant Valley Sunday, recorded by the Monkees in 1966.
[La Gorce, Tammy. "New Jersey\'s Magic Moments", The New York Times, October 30, 2005. Accessed November 25, 2007.]
- Bettye LaVette (1946-), Soul singer who released her first record at age 16 and found success with I\'ve Got My Own Hell to Raise at age 59 in 2005.
- George B. McClellan, Major General and briefly general-in-chief of the Union Army during the Civil War. He ran as a Democrat against Lincoln in the presidential election of 1864. He went on to become governor of New Jersey (1878-1881).
- Joseph Minish (1916-2007), represented New Jersey\'s 11th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives.
[via Associated Press. "Joseph G. Minish, Ex-New Jersey Congressman, Dies at 91", The New York Times, November 26, 2007. Accessed November 26, 2007. "Mr. Minish, a longtime West Orange resident, died at St. Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, N.J., said Michael Brown of the Quinn-Hopping Funeral Home in Livingston."]
- Fred Ott (1860-1936), an employee of Thomas Edison\'s in the 1890s who "starred" in two of the earliest surviving motion pictures – Edison Kinetoscopic Record of a Sneeze (a.k.a. Fred Ott\'s Sneeze) and Fred Ott Holding a Bird – both from 1894.
- Michael Pitt (1981-), Actor who was in Murder by Numbers, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, and Last Days, among other films.[citation needed]
- Anwar Robinson (1979-), finalist on American Idol (season 4). Was also a music teacher at Edison Middle School.
- Peter W. Rodino (1909-2005), United States Congressman from 1949 to 1989.
[Kaufman, Michael T. "Peter W. Rodino Dies at 96; Led House Inquiry on Nixon", The New York Times, May 8, 2005. Accessed November 25, 2007. "Peter W. Rodino Jr., an obscure congressman from the streets of Newark who impressed the nation by the dignity, fairness and firmness he showed as chairman of the impeachment hearings that induced Richard M. Nixon to resign as president, died yesterday at his home in West Orange, N.J.. He was 95."]
- Amos Alonzo Stagg (1862-1965), known as “The Grand Old Man” of college football. During the founding year of the College Football Hall of Fame, he was inducted as both a player and a coach. He was among the first group of inductees into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1959. He is also credited with the invention of the batting cage in baseball and the tackling dummy in football. West Orange’s Stagg Field playground is named in his honor. Ranked #4 on the Sports Illustrated list of The 50 Greatest New Jersey Sports Figures.
[The 50 Greatest New Jersey Sports Figures, Sports Illustrated, December 27, 1999.]
- "Uncle" Floyd Vivino (1951-), Actor, comedian, kids TV show host, musician, and radio show host.
- Scott Wolf (1968-), Actor who is best known as Bailey Salinger on the TV series Party of Five.
- Ian Ziering (1964-), Actor who is best known for the role of Steve Sanders on the TV series Beverly Hills 90210.
[Edel, Raymond A. "Mini-Bio for Kids: Ian Ziering", The Record (Bergen County), December 20, 1992. Accessed September 29, 2007. "Ian, a native of West Orange, is a graduate of William Paterson College in Wayne."]
- Abner Zwillman (1899-1959), Jewish mobster found hanging dead at his mansion home at 15 Beverly Road on February 27, 1959.
[Sullivan, Joseph F. "Jersey Man in Abscam Case Is Experienced With Inquiries; Conspiracy Charges Dismissed Two Other Directors From Jersey Started as Tire Salesman Need for Advice Questioned Bid-Rigging Indictment Message Termed Death Threat", The New York Times, March 9, 1980. "Mr. Zwillman, who later was found hanged in his West Orange home, also testified about his relationship with Mr. Bozzo."]
Trivia
- The Essex County Parks and Recreation Department erected a memorial inside of Eagle Rock Reservation to the memory of those Essex County residents who were killed during the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The memorial is located on a site that overlooks the New York City skyline, and was dedicated on October 20, 2002.
["Remembrance and Rebirth" - The Essex County September 11, 2001 Memorial at Eagle Rock Reservation, accessed March 23, 2007.]
- West Orange was frequently used as a locale in the HBO mafia series The Sopranos. Filming locations included the Green Hill Retirement Community on Pleasant Valley Way depicted as the Green Grove Nursing Home where Tony\'s mother Livia resided and the Police Department headquarters located at 60 Main Street was depicted as the East Haledon Police Department in the episode Johnny Cakes.
- The New Jersey Devils, a NHL team, used the Richard J. Codey Arena at South Mountain as their practice facility until the 07-08 season.
- Thomas Edison bought a property known as Glenmont in 1886 as a wedding gift for his bride. It occupies 13.5 acres (55,000 m²) in the Llewellyn Park district. The remains of both Thomas and Mina Edison are now buried there. Glenmont is maintained by the National Park Service as part of the Edison National Historic Site.
- The first motion picture studio, The Black Maria, was located on the grounds of Edison\'s factory in West Orange.
- The first Linens-N-Things store which has since permanently closed was located on the upper level of the Essex Green Shopping Center.
- Turtle Back Zoo, founded in 1963 and currently one of only four zoos in New Jersey, is located in the South Mountain Reservation.
- West Orange has the largest population of Jewish and Roman Catholic residents in Essex County.[citation needed]
- In 1999, West Orange was chosen to participate in Nickelodeon\'s Big Help-a-Thon kids volunteer movement.
- In 2000, West Orange was chosen as one of the cities to host the annual CowParade.
[Boxer, Sarah. "CRITIC\'S NOTEBOOK: Cattle Are Standin\' Like Statues; Isn\'t It Time to Put Those Fiberglass Visitors Out to Pasture?", The New York Times, July 12, 2000. Accessed October 2, 2007. "It\'s time to rain on the CowParade, the influx of painted bovine forms that has been choking the sidewalks and parks of New York City, Stamford, Conn., and West Orange, N.J., since mid-June."]
- West Orange also houses a branch of the New Jersey National Guard at the West Orange Armory.
See also
References
External links
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from Wikipedia
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